BigBasket.com is an online grocery delivery venture that also has a supporting app on iOS and Android. Grofers till now was app-only and one could not order online from their website. An app-only channel still leaves out a large chunk of population that is wary of ordering from an app.

Owing to the same, Grofers has launched its website for online ordering of groceries and other products available on its app. Grofers’ blog read, “One common feedback we received was that Grofers was only restricted to users who owned a smartphone. So, a couple of months ago we formed a small team of talented designers and engineers, and decided to do something about it.”

Through their website, you can order everything you could order from their app, and use it in the exact same way. All the website needs is your location and you will be prompted with the latest offers and stores around you.

With much more area to play with on the website, Grofers hopes to deliver sharper product photos and a more immersive experience. They hope to set the stage for a simple & transparent shopping experience, and allow access through tablets/ iPads as well.

Diwali is just around the corner and this could not have been a better time for the company to launch its desktop and mobile based website for online ordering. Grofers sells electronics as well, and has tied up with a lot of companies for shorter deliveries.

Will this website be enough to revive the revenues?

Early this year, Grofers shut down operations in nine cities in India, while its competitors went out of market for generating huge losses. This business isn’t very profitable and one needs to be patient to get some customers.

Flipkart and Myntra’s app only strategy did not work and both the companies re-launched their desktop versions to cater to those individuals that did not want an app to make purchases. Even though the traffic from such sources is less, the revenue is higher and doesn’t cause attrition.

Grofers has been holding strong and is focussing on customer retention as well as partnerships with companies like Reliance Jio to get into segments other than just groceries. This has enabled the company to look out for revenue points that can shadow the lower profits in the grocery business.

However, it still remains to be seen whether the website will give Grofers an edge and help it sustain in this business.